Fans of V-8 can rejoice as Mercedes-AMG is reportedly reverting to a thundering ocho for its lineup, according to the latest from AutoCar. Mercedes-Benz recently held an investor meeting where the company shared some of its product plans for the coming years, including those involving its AMG performance division. In the meeting, Mercedes-AMG acknowledged that the C 63’s success didn’t pan out as hoped, mainly due to the model’s use of a turbocharged four-cylinder engine, which struck a negative chord among potential buyers.
Mercedes-AMG supposedly heard the backlash and will be making adjustments to its product strategy by refocusing its powertrain efforts back on V-8 power. Previously, the engineers and product planners at Affalterbach began betting on adopting its Formula 1-derived four-cylinder hybrid powertrain for its road-going performance cars from the continuous push of engine downsizing.
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Mercedes-AMG Boss Admits They Lost “V-8 Customers” With The Latest C63 S
The current C63 S AMG has been controversial for using a turbo-four instead of the honkin’ V-8.
Mercedes-AMG Backtracks On Four-Banger Plans, V-8 To Return To C 63, Destined For CLE 63
When the current C 63 S E Performance model arrived, it generated a lot of negative buzz from ditching its iconic V-8 powerplant for one with half the cylinder count. Despite making more power than the previous C 63 S from its gas-electric hybrid powertrain, 671 horsepower and 752 pound-feet of torque versus the old V-8’s 503 hp and 516 lb-ft, the monumental power increase couldn’t hide the fact that the V-8 and its iconic soundtrack were gone.
As a result, sales tanked, on what was AMG’s top-selling model. To address this shortcoming, Mercedes-AMG is reinstating its plans to keep the V-8 around, with rumors suggesting Affalterbach could fit the current C 63 with its updated V-8 for the 2026 model year. That’s around the time Mercedes-AMG planned to update the C 63 for its mid-cycle refresh.
The same sources also reportedly said AMG’s incoming high-po CLE coupe could also get the V-8. Speculation suggests the eight-cylinder will be an updated version of the company’s current twin-turbo 4.0-liter M177, which is what powers all of Mercedes-AMG’s current “63” models.
The New V-8 Will Supposedly Get A Flat-Plane Crankshaft
According to the British motoring outlet, word has it that AMG’s updated V-8 will change out the original version’s cross-plane crankshaft for a more high-performance-oriented flat-plane crank. It’s the same crankshaft design used by racecars. Ferrari and Ford are the only few automakers that recently produced flat-plane-crank V-8s. Ferrari uses them in all of its V-8s, while Ford’s Performance division used a flat-plane crank in some of its most recent Shelby Mustang models.
The benefits of a flat-plane crank in a V-8 are quicker throttle response, more power, and a more unique engine soundtrack, due to the fact that the crank pin angles are set 180-degrees parallel to each other, versus at 90-degrees in a perpendicular pattern. As a result, flat-plane cranks weigh less, which translates to less rotational mass and thus, more freedom to rotate within the crankcase.
Flat-plane cranks are also smaller, which allows for an overall reduction in size and packaging. In the application of the updated C 63, not only will it improve performance, but it’s AMG’s way of adopting the V-8 for the latest W206 chassis, which supposedly wasn’t designed and engineered to accommodate a big V-8 in the first place. So, instead of reengineering the whole car, Mercedes-AMG is reengineering the engine.
There are drawbacks, however, as flat-plane cranks aren’t as refined and smooth, and require more weight balancing to offset opposing vibrations. But for sports cars like Ferraris, Shelby Mustangs, and even Mercedes-AMG cars, refinement isn’t as much of a priority as performance.
Mercedes-AMG previously used a flat-plane crank in the M178 for the AMG GT Black Series in 2021. But that’s because it was a harder-edged, more track-focused variant of the AMG GT. Despite the move back to V-8s, the new C 63 will apparently retain its electric hybrid assist, meaning it’ll probably sport even more power than the current turbo-four-based C 63 S E Performance.
